


lavender and chamomile

by eitherwaywerenotalone



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Established Relationship, F/F, Flashbacks, Fluff, Morning Cuddles, One Shot, Sparring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 21:28:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29160426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eitherwaywerenotalone/pseuds/eitherwaywerenotalone
Summary: Lin wakes up one morning, happy and content with her lover in her arms, and catches a whiff of the scent of Kya's hair. To her, it's home, and she reflects back on the very first time she was enveloped in that smell.
Relationships: Lin Beifong & Toph Beifong, Lin Beifong/Kya II
Comments: 10
Kudos: 76





	lavender and chamomile

**Author's Note:**

> hi :)) this is my first ever fic, so i'm not really expecting anyone to read it, but thank you so much if you do !! i just love these two with all my heart.

Lin squinted, her eyes still heavy with sleep, as the soft morning light shone through the slight crack in between the deep green curtains that let the awakening sun seep through. She observed the soft glow begin to fill the room, casting shadows and creeping across the four walls of the room, until the space was bathed in a pale light. 

Like most mornings these days, she felt a strong sense of contentment settle across her chest as she watched the shadows dance across the room, the weak light that signaled daybreak only bringing a further sense of peace over her. 

This feeling of contentment may have had something to do with the beautiful waterbender curled like a child into Lin’s side, her head tucked into the crook off Lin’s neck, and a delicate, long arm flung haphazardly over Lin’s muscled torso – _Kya _.__

____

Even her name was ethereal, Lin thought, letting out a sigh as she registered her lover’s peaceful presence. Kya let out a small noise, and shifted in her sleep, her arm tightening around Lin’s torso as she unconsciously pulled her ever closer to her own sleeping body. 

____

Kya’s sleek dark hair, peppered with streaks of silver these days, much like Lin herselves’, was spread like a flowing river over the linen pillow her head was settled on. Lin turned her head towards her lover’s and gently, ever so tenderly, pressed a feather-light kiss to the top of her head. 

____

She let herself linger there for a moment, breathing in the familiar scent of lavender and chamomile she had become accustomed to over the last few years. That was the comforting smell she associated with mischievous deep-blue eyes, radiant smiles, tinkling laughter, and most importantly, home. A brief smile playing across her lips as she remembered the first time she had caught a whiff of that scent. 

____

******** 

____

The two were teenagers, and sparring on Air Temple Island as they usually did. Katara and Toph stood to the side of the courtyard where the two fought, Toph having taken a rare Saturday off work to spend time with her daughter for once. Usually, Lin would have been excited to spend a rare day with her mother, and would have been looking forward to impressing the Police Chief with a demonstration of her earthbending skill, but she wasn’t looking forward to what her mother might catch on to that day. 

____

Lin, as of recently, had begun to feel strange around Kya, and it started to irritate her. She was not fond of the fluttering in the depths of her stomach as she watched her friend train, her smooth skin slick with sweat as she expertly bent the water as if it was an extension of her own body. 

____

She was not fond either of the tongue tied feeling she would get as the other girl jokingly teased her, and she especially didn’t enjoy the keen hyperawareness, and the heat that would settle over her cheeks whenever her friend brushed against her as they grabbed a cool drink after training, or affectionately leaned into her as they walked side by side. 

____

Toph could always feel Lin’s heartbeat, and Lin was terrified that her mother would hear her heart racing as she approached Kya. Whenever Lin and Kya were together, her heart would beat so hard she was scared it would come out of her mouth, and Lin really, really did not want her mother to put two and two together, and figure out Lin’s confused feelings towards her friend. 

____

As the two sped across the bay to Air Temple Island on the ferry, Toph, noticing Lin was even quieter than normal, asked “Hey, kid, something on your mind?” 

____

Lin just sighed, knowing it was impossible to lie to her mother, but there was no way she was going to talk to Toph of all people about feelings. 

____

“N-no.” she muttered, and she thanked the Spirits that her mother was blind, as a furious blush had settled across her face. Toph, although she could tell her daughter wasn’t being truthful, just replied gruffly, 

____

“Whatever it is kid, it’ll work itself out”. 

____

Lin was thankful her mother didn’t push the issue, and the two disembarked from the boat and made their way up to where Katara and Kya were waiting to greet them on the pier. 

____

“Aunt Toph, Lin!”, Kya yelled, waving her hand excitedly and running down the pier to bring Lin into a crashing hug. Lin groaned internally as she returned Kya’s tight hug. 

____

_Shit. _Her heart started to race at what felt like a hundred miles an hour, and her mother shot a quick quizzical glance in Lin’s direction. To her daughter’s overwhelming relief, Toph didn’t say anything, and Lin hoped that her mother had dismissed it as a result of the heat.__

______ _ _

______ _ _

As they sparred, Lin stamped her foot to the ground, bringing up five boulders and swinging her leg up into the air, firing them one by one at Kya. However, Lin was distracted, unable to fully pay attention to the fight, and did not have the same hyperawareness of her surroundings the Beifongs were renowned for, the same hyperawareness she ordinarily would have had if she was sparring with someone, anyone else. 

______ _ _

Her mind was distracted by fleeting thoughts of the ocean blue, sparkling eyes, gentle sprinklings of freckles, and smooth, honey coloured skin of her sparring partner. As a result of these unwelcome thoughts, Lin hadn’t noticed the stream of water in the corner of her eye until it was too late, until the water promptly curled around her foot, which was still suspended in mid air, and before she knew it, she had been toppled to the ground and was being pulled across the courtyard of the Air Temple towards Kya. 

______ _ _

“What was that?!” 

______ _ _

“C’mon, Lin, I can’t believe _Sugar Queen Jr _was able to pull that on you!” Toph exclaimed.__

________ _ _ _ _

“Well done, Kya, good use of surprise!” Katara praised her daughter, shooting an exasperated look at Toph as she recycled her childhood nickname for the waterbender. 

________ _ _ _ _

Lin had barely even registered what happened when Kya, victorious, launched herself on top of Lin, grabbing both her wrists above her head and pinning her to the ground. 

________ _ _ _ _

“Haha!” she giggled exuberantly, “I just defeated the great Lin Beifong! What do you have to say about that, huh Linny?” she crowed, triumphant. 

________ _ _ _ _

Meanwhile, the fight had caused Kya’s hair to come out of its signature ponytail, and waves of thick, deep brown hair surrounded Lin’s face as she stared into the eyes of her friend (but Lin was almost sure Kya no longer felt like just a “friend” to her). 

________ _ _ _ _

Lin’s eyes widened at Kya’s sudden closeness, and for a moment, she was speechless as the scent of lavender and chamomile reached her nostrils. She was still breathing heavily from the fight, and with every breath she took, she could smell that heavenly scent all around her, staring into Kya’s mischievous eyes. She wanted nothing more than to stay in this moment forever, Kya’s grip pushing her wrists to the ground, surrounded by Kya’s flowing hair as her elfin face lingered above Lin’s, her lips just millimetres from Lin’s own. Lin was so entranced she almost collided her lips with Kya’s, until- 

________ _ _ _ _

The spell suddenly broke, and Lin came crashing back into reality, her regular scowl passing across her features. She pushed herself off the ground, Kya releasing her wrists, and admitted defeat to the waterbender. 

________ _ _ _ _

“Whatever, _Kya _, you win this one, but only because I was off my game today!” she growled, poking her tongue out at her friend.__

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kya, of course, was uncowed by Lin’s abrasive tone, as she knew Lin wasn’t really annoyed with her, and besides, she enjoyed teasing her stubborn friend more then she liked to admit. She had grown up with Lin, and she knew that beyond Lin’s outwardly gruff persona that she displayed to the world, even as a teenager, she was a sweet, generous soul who would put her own life on the line to protect her, even though she was the younger of the two. 

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She too had begun to notice some changes in her friend, as she had observed Lin’s taunt, lightly muscled stomach as the two changed after training, and the way she was gracefully growing into her narrow bright green eyes and high, defined cheekbones. She had noticed the way Lin’s thick black hair would come out of her normal pinned back style, and hang dishevelled around her face as they sparred, her confident, lazy smirk, and the hungry look in Lin’s eye that Kya thought she sometimes saw when Lin looked at her. 

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

However, she quickly shook these thoughts from her mind whenever they would intrude, as she knew Lin would never think of her like that in a million years, and besides, Kya was planning on getting away from Republic City as soon as she could. She was itching to see the world beyond, and she wasn’t going to let a tiny, unrequited crush on the Police Chief’s daughter stop her from accomplishing that dream. 

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Banishing these thoughts from her mind, Kya teased: “Well then, _Linny _, let’s go again, shall we? I’m sure I could probably beat you twice in a row, right?” She once again repeated Lin’s despised nickname, hoping it would only rile her up further.__

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The look on Lin’s face told her that her challenge was immediately accepted, as the earthbender smirked, leapt to her feet and replied: 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Ha! I wouldn’t count on it, I won’t go so easy this time!” she retorted, her hands already positioned for a rematch, the smell of lavender and chamomile persistently lingering in her nostrils. 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

At the end of the day, Lin had decided to sleep over at the Island, and Toph had to head back to the city as she was on duty early the next morning. Lin decided to walk her mother down to the pier, and before Toph stepped onto the ferry, she socked her daughter lightly on the arm and said, uncharacteristically softly: 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“So, Kya, huh?” 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Lin froze, her mind going blank with panic, only managing to stammer out: 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Huh? What- Kya- No! What are you- “ 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Lin.” 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Her mother’s voice stopped her, and she groaned internally with shame as her mother said: 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Listen, it’s alright, I don’t particularly want to talk about this with you either. Just be careful, okay?” 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Yeah, Mom, whatever”, Lin grumbled, watching as her mother stepped onto the ferry at the end of the pier. 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Toph turned away on the ferry to face the city, and she let out the surprised chuckle she had been holding in all afternoon. She would never have pegged her daughter to be interested in someone as flighty and free spirited as Kya, (which, Toph thought, she had in common with Twinkle Toes) but the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“ _Kids. _” she thought to herself, shaking her head fondly.__

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Lin heard light footsteps running up behind her, and once again, the scent of lavender and chamomile washed over her as Kya reached her. 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Ready for dinner?” she asked, her eyes sparkling. 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Lin turned to her, and replied, with a competitive smirk: 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Yeah, and I bet I can beat you there!” 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“We’ll see about that!” Kya laughed delightedly, sprinting behind Lin up the pier, dodging small boulders the earthbender was throwing her way to slow her down. 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

*********** 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

A sleepy, contented groan brought Lin back to the present, and a warm, impossibly soft hand travelled up to rest on Lin’s cheek, gently caressing her scars. The very same hands that had pinned Lin to the ground of the Air Temple courtyard decades previous. 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Lin turned to see her lover shift against her, and brought the hand caressing her cheek down, pressing the delicate fingers to her lips, trying to convey the all-consuming love and tenderness she felt towards her lover in the simple physical motion. 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She lowered to face to Kya’s to gently kiss her good morning, Kya letting out a sleepy groan before whispering “Good morning, honey”, closing her eyes again and rolling into Lin’s waiting arms. 

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Lin buried her face in her lover’s hair, breathing in the familiar, comforting scent that had stayed consistent throughout all these years, and knew that she would do anything, give up everything in the world to hold onto the woman curled into her side, finally, after all the lost time.

______________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading, and if you have any feedback plz plz leave a comment <33


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